the new russian nationalism236, 237; Escandell and Ceobanu 2009: 64–5). Thus, in Moscow,
according to the NEORUSS data, about 60 per cent of respond-
ents consider that, where they live, more than 40 per cent of the
population are migrants. This incredible figure derives from fears,
aggravations and fatigue – stemming, in the first instance, from
difficulties in adapting to the breakdown of one’s accustomed
environment; second, from the lack of information about the
reasons for the concentration of migrants in particular places
and about their role in the development of the town; and lastly,
because Moscow is a giant, overfilled metropolis (many inter-
viewees talked about this).^13
Seen in this light, the greater apprehension displayed in the
NEORUSS survey by Moscow women towards migrants becomes
more understandable. Judging by the interviews, such an attitude
is not usually accompanied by consciously anti- migrant frames,
but boils down to a feeling of insecurity in situations where
there are large groups of migrant men nearby – say, in an empty
street or remote corner of a market. Moreover, on clarification,
it appears that such feelings of fear may also be engendered by
encountering a crowd of ‘Russian’ men. However, the chance of
meeting a large group of non- migrant (‘Russian’) men united by
some factor or other is not so great in Moscow – military units,
football matches and bikers’ rallies are not on the list of places
the average resident visits every day. But as a result of their not
resembling anything that the women are familiar with, migrant
men are already united as a notional ‘crowd’ in the minds of these
women.
Concluding remarks
An understanding of Russian society as continuously changing,
among other things, as a result of migration, is only starting to
form. This can be seen in the absence of a stable public consensus
about migrants and their role and place ‘among us’ – and is why,
in our opinion, various contradictions emerge in the answers
to some survey questions. It can also be seen in a lack of tools,
practices and initiatives that could facilitate mutually enriching
contacts between different people living in Russia.